Cancer: The Evolutionary Legacy

Setting forth a novel Darwinian theory of the origin of cancer, Greaves contends that cancer's development is a bizarre yet remarkably close parody of species diversification in evolution, embodying the basic ground rules of random genetic diversification and selection for survival, as cells that are driven by mutant genes that ignore signals to restrain their aggressive growth take over and cannibalize bodily systems. Director of the Leukemia Research Fund Center at London's Institute of Cancer Research, Greaves rejects the widespread view that the 20th century's cancer epidemic is due to environmental pollutants, chemicals, pesticides and manmade radiation. Instead, he insists that all cancers arise from a mix of causes, such as naturally occurring and synthetic toxins, chronic stress, overexposure to sunlight, cigarette smoking, gamma rays, DNA-damaging viruses, poor diet and spontaneous physiological changes caused by aging. Pursuing his Darwinian tack, Greaves also comes up with some maverick hypotheses about the causes of breast and prostate cancer. The good news, he says, is that 90% of modern cancers are preventable. Besides recommending changes in diet and lifestyle, he envisions advances in genetic screening to allow identification of the mutant genes that signal escalating malignancy. Though technical at times, Greaves's clean prose and historical asides make this book accessible to the general reader. 20 illus. (Mar.)